Automobile bumper guard



May 19, 19,42. R. A. SANDBERG AUTOMOBILE BUMPER GUARD Filed April 5, 1941 Patented May 19, 1942 stares ies AUTOMOBILE BUMPER GUARD Application April 5, 1941, serial No. 387,0@

2 claims. (cl. 293-55) This invention relates to vertical guards for automobile bumper bars, particularly to the hinge type of guard which may be swung down to permit access to some automobile parts as for example the upwardly swinging door or cover of the trunk or baggage compartment at the rear of the automobile body. I

The important object of the invention is to produce a simple economically manufactured guard structure of this type in which the latching mechanism for holding the guard in service position comprises a minimum number of simple parts readily manipulated for release of the guard body for downward swing.

Another important object is to provide improved structure forming a hinge support for the guard body and also functioning to protect the guard structure and bumper impact bar against torsional strain and distortion when the guard structure is impacted by the bumper on another vehicle.

The various features of my invention are in-v corporated in the structure shown on the drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section,

of the guard structure mounted on a bumper impact bar;

Figure 2 is a front elevation of the supporting bracket structure for the swingable guard body and the latchng mechanism;

Figure 3 is a rear elevation to show the latching cooperation of the guard body with the latch mechanism; and

Figure 4 is a plan view of a guide plate for the latch mechanism.

Referring to Figure l, I represents the front impact bar of a bumper structure to which my improved guard structure is applied. This guard structure comprises the guard body or impact member I I of channel shape having the sidewalls I2 and I3 shaped at their rear edges to engage against and follow the front transverse curvature of the impact bar l0.

A supporting bracket structure B is of U- shaped cross section comprising the back wall I4 and the sidewalls or flanges |5-I6. At their front edges the sidewalls are shaped to t against and follow the curvature of the inner side of the bumper impact bar I0, and a bolt Il extends through the back wall i4 of the bracket and :l

through an opening I8 in the impact bar l0 to receive a nut i9 whereby the bracket is rigidly secured to the impact bar. At their upper ends the sidewalls l and I6 of the bracket have projecting tongues 20 engaging against the upper '35 edge of the impact bar to assist in holding the rbracket accurately aligned on the bar.

-hinge pin 23 extending between and secured to the sidewalls I2 and I3 of the guardV body Il. The guard body may thus be swung upwardly on its hinge support to the service position against the front of the bumper impact bar Il), or may be swung downwardly out of the way of an automobile part, such as the trunk door, so that the door may be swung open.

The bracket structure B has its lower end portion 24 deflected rearwardly to receive the supporting bar 2| and to be rigidly secured thereto as by a bolt 25. With the bracket rigidly secured to the supporting bar and to the bumper impact bar I B, the hinge support for the guard body will be rigidly held in proper relation to the impact bar so that the guard body may always accurately engage with the impact bar whenV set to its service position, and furthermore the bumper impact bar will be strengthened against toring the back wall 26 engaging against the back wall i t of the bracket, and the sidewalls or flanges 2l and 28 engaging against the sidewalls I4 and I5 respectively of the bracket. Tongues 29 deflected out of the sidewalls of the bracket form guides in front of the sidewalls 21. and 28 of the guide frame 26 so that this frame is guided for vertical reciprocation in the bracket B. At its lower end the frame wall 26 is cut out as indicated at 3l) to receive and clear the bolt I7.`

At its upper end the wall 26 is deected forwardly to form a top wall 3| whose forward end is bent and shaped to provide a latch hook 32. Secured to and depending from the top wall 3| is a rod 33 which extends through a passageway 34 in the guide plate v35 extending between the sidewalls It and I5 of the bracket-B. A spring 36 encircles the rod between the wall 3l and the plate 35 and tends at all times to shift the latching frame upwardly to its latching position,` a pin 3l extending through the rod below the plate limiting such upward shift of the frame.

To support the guide plate 35, its ends 38 plate, the metal at the ends of the slots is upset to close the slots, as indicated at 40. At its inner end, the plate 35 is recessed as indicated at 4I for clearing the sidewalls 2l and 28 of the frame 26 so as not to interfere with the free vertical reciprocation of this frame.

Extending transversely inwardly from the sidewalls I2 and I3 of the guard body Il are keeper tongues 42 for cooperation with the latch hook 32. When the guard body is in its service position, as shown in full lines on Figure 1, these` keeper tongues will be behind the back wall ar of the latch hook, and this back wall has a comparatively slight inclination forwardly from the horizontal top wall 3| of the frame 26 so that, as the spring 36 urges the frame 26 upwardly, this inclined back wall will exert camming action against the keeper tongues 42 tending to force the guard body Il intimately against the front of the impact bar I and to hold it in such service position against loose motion 'or rattling. When it is desired t0 swing the. guard body down for access to the trunk door of the automobile, the frame 26. may be pressed down manually to withdraw the latch hook from the keeper tongues. To facilitate such manual operation of the frame 26, a portion 43 is deflected therefrom into hori-Y zontal position to form a nger plate by which the frame 2S may be readily depressed.

When the swung down guard body is swung back toward its service position, the tongues G2 will engage with the inclined front leg b of the latch hook 32, the inclination of this leg being such that the keeper tongues Will cam the hook and frame 26 downwardly until the keeper tongues have passed the crest of the hook and then the spring 35 will shift the hook upwardly for camming engagement with thekeeper tongues to cam the guard body into its service position.

If desired, the inclination of the back a of the latch hook may be such that when abnormal pull is applied to the upper end of the guard body ll in a direction away from the bumper impact bar l0, the keeper tongues will cam the latch hook supporting frame 26 downwardly for release of the guard body. Should the bumper of another vehicle succeed in passing over the top and behind the guard body Il, then when such vehicle drives away, the guard body will be swung away from the latch mechanism and the guard structure and the impact bar will not be injured.

I have thus produced a simple, economically manufactured, but very efiicient guard structure for automobile bumpers in which a minimum number of simple parts, readily formed from sheet metal, function to latch the guard body in service position and can be readily manipulated to release the guard body for downward swing.

I have shown a practical and eilcient embodiment of the features of my invention but I do not desire to be limited to the exact construction, arrangement and operation shown and described as changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

I claim as follows:

1. Guard structure for an automobile bumper comprising a bracket of U-shaped cross section adapted to be secured against the rear side of an automobile bumper impact bar to extend transversely thereof, a guard body having hinge connection at its lower end with the lower end of said bracket for swing into or out of service position relative to an impact bar, a latch frame of U-shape cross section seated within said bracket for vertical shift therein, tongues deflected out of the sidewalls of said bracket to be in front of the sidewalls of said latch frame for cooperating with the rear wall of said bracket to guide said latch frame, a latch hook at the outer end of said latch frame, the sidewalls of said bracket having slots, a guide plate seated at its ends in said slots to extend transversely in said b-racket, a rod extending from the upper end of said latch frame through said guide plate, a spring interposed between said guide plate and the outer end of said latch frame for 4urging said latch frame outwardly for setting of the latch hook in latching position, and keeper'structure on said guard body for interlatching engagement with said latch hook when said body is swung upwardly into its service position.

2. Guard structure for an automobile bumper comprising a bracket of U-shape cross section adapted to be secured against the rear side of an automobile bumper impact bar to extend transversely thereof, a guard body of U-shape cross section having hinge connection at its lower end with the lower end of said bracket for swing into or out of service position relative to an impact bar, a latch frame Within said bracket to extend the full width thereof, means on said bracket for guiding said latch frame for vertical shift, a latch plate at the outer end of said latch frame and integral therewith and terminating at its forward end in a latch hook, an abutment plate Within `said bracket extending between the sidewalls thereof, a spring between said abutment plate and said latch plate tending to shift said latch frame outwardly, and keeper tongues extending from the opposite sidewalls of said guard body for interlatching engagement with the lateral ends of said latch hook when said guard body is swung RAY A. SANDBERG. 

